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Ariane Dual Success For European DBS
Washington - October 5, 1998 - Arianespace successfully launched Monday, two direct broadcast satellites (DBS): W2 for Eutelsat, and Sirius 3 for the Swedish company NSAB from Kourou at 7.51pm local time.Flight 111 was carried out by an Ariane 44L, the version of the European launcher with four liquid-propellant strap-on boosters. It used the 81st Ariane 4 launcher out of the 116 ordered to date from the European space industry. Moments after this 39th successful Ariane 4 launch in a row, Arianespace Chairman and CEO Jean-Marie Luton said, "We have accomplished our mission for this evening's two customers. Direct television broadcasting now extends from Scandinavia to North Africa, and from the Middle East to the Indian Ocean. We are very proud of our pivotal role in the Eutelsat system: out of the European organization's 15 satellites, Arianespace has launched 13. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Eutelsat for its long-standing confidence. And we would also like to thank NSAB, which has entrusted us with the three satellites in its fleet. "We are also very satisfied because, since August 25th, we have carried out three launches in less than six weeks, illustrating our ability to offer our customers fast, flexible and reliable access to space." The W2 satellite is the 13th entrusted by Eutelsat to Arianespace. Built by Alcatel Space Industries in Cannes, France, W2 weighed 2,950 kg (6,490 lb) at liftoff. Positioned at 16 degrees East, it will provide direct broadcast and multimedia services to the entire European continent, North Africa and the Middle East, as well as to Reunion Island and Mauritius. It is equipped with 24 Ku-band transponders. Sirius 3 was built by Hughes Space & Communications at El Segundo, California. Weighing 1,420 kg (3,124 lb) at liftoff, it is equipped with 14 Ku-band transponders. Positioned at 28.2 degrees East, Sirius 3 will provide digital direct TV broadcasting to all Scandinavian countries and Europe. The next launch, scheduled for October 20, is the third and final qualification flight of the Ariane 5 heavy-lift launch vehicle. The following Arianespace launch, Flight 113, is scheduled for October 28 and will use an Ariane 44L. Following Flight 111, Arianespace's order book now stands at 38 satellites to be launched.
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